Rhode Island General Laws 17-19-36. Tabulation of town returns – Certificate of election
The local board shall meet on the day following the election and shall tabulate the town or city election returns, as the case may be, and announce the results, but shall issue no certificates of election until the time for petitions filed under this section has expired and, if a petition has been filed, until the petition has been finally determined. Any candidate at the election challenging the correctness of the declaration of result as applied to the candidate may, within seven (7) days after the election, petition the state board to conduct a recount of the votes cast according to the provisions set forth in § 17-19-37.1. After the completion of the recount, and if it finds that the candidate was elected, it shall direct the local board to issue to the candidate a certificate of election, but if it finds that the candidate declared to be elected by the local board was in fact elected, it shall direct the board to issue a certificate of election to the candidate previously declared elected.
History of Section.
G.L. 1938, ch. 318, § 14; P.L. 1940, ch. 818, § 1; P.L. 1944, ch. 1525, § 1; G.L. 1956, § 17-19-32; G.L. 1956, § 17-19-36; P.L. 1958, ch. 18, § 1; P.L. 1968, ch. 248, § 1; P.L. 1996, ch. 277, § 12; P.L. 1996, ch. 298, § 12.
Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws 17-19-36
- Candidate: means any individual who has qualified under law to have his or her name appear on the ballot for nomination for election or election to office;
(2) "Computer ballot" means the paper ballot prepared by the office of the secretary of state for use in conjunction with the optical-scan precinct-count system or the voting equipment precinct-count system then in place and procured in accordance with this chapter;
(3) "Public office" means any state, municipal, school, or district office or other position that is filled by popular election, except political party offices which shall mean any state, city, town, ward, or representative or senatorial district committee office of a political party or delegate to a political party convention, or any similar office;
(4) A "Vote" shall be any mark made with the appropriate marking device within the ballot voting area between the head and tail of the arrow or in the oval as indicated on the computer ballot next to the candidate, write-in candidate, or question, as is applicable, for whom the voter casts his or her ballot, except as provided in § 17-20-24;
(5) "Voting equipment" means an optical-scan precinct-count voting system or the voting equipment precinct-count system then in place and procured in accordance with this chapter, related memory device, all related hardware and software, accessible voting systems required by federal law, and voting booths;
(6) "Warden" includes moderator and vice versa; and
(7) "Write-in candidate" means any individual receiving votes or seeking election to office by virtue of having irregular ballots cast for him or her pursuant to § 17-19-31. See Rhode Island General Laws 17-19-1
- town: may be construed to include city; the words "town council" include city council; the words "town clerk" include city clerk; the words "ward clerk" include clerk of election district; the words "town treasurer" include city treasurer; and the words "town sergeant" include city sergeant. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-9